Bolivia situation guide
The first two minutes decide the whole call
Opening the Proyecto Kantuta call means running three registers in one breath, ustedes for the group, vos for Álvaro, usted for Don Miguel, before a single work topic comes up. The audio check ('¿me escuchan bien?') always comes first, and it almost always finds something: Álvaro's connection glitching, or Don Miguel's microphone muted. How you handle Don Miguel's moment is the whole chapter's safety line: warm, concrete help ('ahí abajo a la izquierda… ¡ahí sí!') and a normalizing line ('a todos nos pasa'), never a sigh, never 'seniors can't', never doing it for him instead of guiding him. Once the audio settles, the first minutes stay social on purpose (family, the feria, the heat) because starting cold into business reads worse here than starting a few minutes late. When someone joins unannounced, like Álvaro's cousin the photographer, a quick 'les presento a…' folds them in without breaking stride. And the work itself never starts with an order, it starts with a question, 'bueno, ¿arrancamos?', because consensus, not command, is how these calls move forward.
Essential vocabulary
- ¿me escuchan bien?: can you (all) hear me well? The line every video call starts with here, checking the room before checking the agenda.
- se te corta / se le corta: you're cutting out (vos / usted) The same glitch, two registers, this pair marks exactly who you're talking to on a mixed-register call.
- el micrófono está en silencio: the microphone is muted The most common first hiccup of any call, naming it precisely is the first step to a warm, fast fix.
- ¡ahí sí!: there we go! / now it works! The universal confirmation that a fix worked, for microphones, phone signal, or printers alike.
- a todos nos pasa: it happens to everyone The warmth formula that turns a tech mistake into nothing, never a sigh, never impatience.
- les presento a…: let me introduce… The quick who's-who line for anyone who joins a call unannounced.
- ¿cómo está la familia?: how is the family doing? The question that gives the call its footing before the agenda even opens.
- mientras esperamos…: while we wait… The filler that keeps a call warm during any small hiccup, instead of an awkward silence.
- bueno, ¿arrancamos?: alright, shall we get started? The friendly, consensus-seeking signal that ends the social minutes and starts the work, never a bare command.
Bolivian Spanish terms
- ¡ahí sí!: there we go! (it works now) You'll hear this everywhere a fix just worked (microphones, phone signal, printers) not only on calls.
- a todos nos pasa: it happens to everyone Helping a senior with technology warmly, with a line like this one, is relationship gold here, visible impatience costs far more than the delay itself.
- bueno, ¿arrancamos?: alright, shall we get started? Phrased as a question, not an order, consensus-checking signals like this one quietly run Bolivian meetings.
Useful phrases
- ¿Me escuchan bien?: Can you all hear me well? The opening audio-check question of almost every video call.
- [Nombre], no le escuchamos, el micrófono está en silencio.: [Name], we can't hear you, your microphone is muted. The warm, precise way to flag a muted mic to someone you address as usted, without any hint of impatience.
- Les presento a [persona], [qué hace].: Let me introduce [person], [what they do]. The quick who's-who line for anyone who joins a call unannounced.
- Bueno, ¿arrancamos?: Alright, shall we get started? The friendly consensus-seeking signal that closes the social minutes and opens the work.
Learn this in the app
Meetings, Calls and Presentations in Bolivia, Spanish